Engine control



S. M. UDALE ENGINE CONTROL A ril 3, 1945.

Filed May 17, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

April 3, 1945.

Filed May 17, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 V a m 4 O A 1 O p 4 a z w 0 0 a m 7 a 7 a 4 m j 1 W Patented Apr. 3, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ENGINE CONTROL I Stanley M. Udale, Detroit, Mich, assignor to George M. Holley and Earl Holley Application May 17, 1943, Serial'No. 487,223

1 Claim.

The object of this invention is to simplify the controls of the R. P. M.-, the supercharger pressure and of the mixture ratio of an airplane engine. At the present time airplane engines are usually run with variable pitch propellers by means of which the speed of the engine is controlled by a centrifugal governor. For some years there have been devices which would adjust the throttle of the engine to give any dcs red boost pressure within certain limits. It is also common in 1943 to mechanically select at any given engine R. P. M. specific boost pressure.

It is also known that it is desirable to simultaneously control the'speed of the engine and the boost pressure. and at the same t'me to be able to select from two mixture ratios at each R. P. M. boost combination an economical ratio and a normal ratio. This is obtained at any given R. P. M. of the engine by arranging so that there will be a specific boost pressure corresponding to maximum mileage and another one to a normalpressure.

It is also known that the fuel ar ratio under any given R. P. M. boost pressure combination should vary with the altitude whichmeans that there is a desirable fuel flow for every condition under which the plane can be flown. I have discovered that I can vary the fuel flow by means of the altitude and by means of the position of the control which simultaneously controls the R P. M. and the boost pressure, and that by hav ng two supercharger pressures to select from, I can select the higher supercharger pressure at any given R. P. M. in order to get a leaner mixture.

With the lower boost pressure, I automatically obtain a richer mixture.

The figures show diagrammatically the elements of my invention. The control shaft ill is controlled by a manually operated control lever ii and this shaft il'l controls another lever which through a link l8 controlsthe rack and pinion II which controls a spring i6 which engages with a governor i1 rotated by a shaft I8 at a speed proportional to the R. P. M. of the engine. The valve i9 admits hydraulic pressure through a pipe '20. Th hydraulic fluid is delivered througha pipe 2i. The oil under pressure flows along the pipe to operate the variable pitch mechanism mounted on the hub of the propeller (not shown).

With this arrangement, every position of the shaft Ill corresponds to a definite R. P. M. of the engine. In order that every position of the shaft ll shall also correspond to a definite boost pres- .sure, the following mechanism i provided: A

iii

with a rod 21 which compresses a spring 28 which engages with a servomotor valve 29 which controls the servomotor piston 30 which is connected with the throttle 3i, through lever 13 which engages with lever 83 mounted on throttle 3i through a spring II. The throttle 3| is mounted in the'passage 55 leading to the supercharger. Hence, any given position of the cam 23 will control the position of the throttle valve 3i. roup of partially evacuated capsules 34 located in a closed chamber 33 engages with the valve 28. This chamber 33 is connected through a pipe 31 with the supercharger of the engine. Liquid under pressure is admitted through an opening 86 and discharges through-a pipe 38 to provide the operating means for the servomotor pis ton 30. The oil in the lubrication system can be used in place of the gasoline under pressure.

The double cam 22-23 is shown in Figure l keyed toand mounted on the shaft Ill and, is.

will be two boost pressures, the higher one giving the more economical fuel consumption and the lower one giving the mixture ratio for the best power.

The fuel flow is controlled by means of a cam 31 wh ch is also slidably mounted on the cam shaft ID. Thi cam 31 en ages with a needle valve 40 which regulates the how of gasoline along the pipe 50 to the chamber 5i which is bounded on the right by a diaphragm 52. The diaphragm is supported by a spring 49 and controls the move ment of a needle 41 which permits the gasolineto flow through the passage 48 to the center of the supercharger. The gasoline is maintained in the chambers 4i and ii undertwo constant pres sures determined by the springs 42 and".

gasoline is supplied from apump'tj which obtains gasoline from the gasoline supply tank 59" and discharges along the pipe 48 into the cham-' pressure also acts as the motive power for the servomotor piston ill. The gasoline in the chamber ii is maintained at a constant pressure because if the pressure rises above the predetermined pressure, a diaphragm 48 moves the needle 45 to the right and allows the fuel to escape through the pipe 44 which is connected with the pipe '54 and returns the gasoline to the tank. The gasoline under pressure enters chamber 4| through a restricted opening 56 and escapes through an opening controlled by the needle valve 45 so that when the needle 45 moves to the right under the influence of excessive pressure in the chamber H the pressure in 4| falls to that determined by the spring 42.

The cam 31 is slid to the right and left by means of an aneroid 38 which moves a lever 38 which engages with the cam 31. With this arrangement, the fuel flow past the needle 40 is determined solely by the position of the valve 40- as there is a constant pressure difference between the chamber 4| and the chamber 5i.

The position of the needle 40 is determined by the angular position of the shaft III which varies en speed there is a definite amount of gasoline admitted through pipe 48 to the center of the supercharger. A cam I0 controls the spark advance through a lever 66 which engages with the circuit breakers 60, iii, 62, 63, and 64 through the link 65. The roller 61 engages with the cam Ill and with the cam II when the lever 24 is rotated anticlockwise. There is thus a specific spark advance for every R. P. M. of the engine and for every M. A. P.

An exhaust pipe I00 supplies exhaust ga to drive a supercharger through a turbine 19 so as to provide the additional air called for when the downward motion of the servomotor piston 3 no longer opens the throttle 3|, because throttl 3! then engages with stop 12;

The piston 30 can continue to move as the lever" 13 engages with the throttle lever 83 through a compression spring 14, which permits over travel of the lever 13.

Lever I3 is connected to a lever Ikthrough a link 15. A slot in lever I1 permits over travel in the opposite direction so that when the throttle 3] is closed, the link 15 can descend, its lower end sliding in the slot ii.

The lever 13, when rotated anti-clockwise, rotates the link- 11 anti-clockwise and closes the valve 18, thus forcing the exhaust gases through the turbine 19 so as to drive the supercharger faster until the supercharger provides the pressure to the chamber 33 to bring the servomotor valve 29 into the position of equilibrium in which it is shown.

The exhaust throttle 18 engages with the stop 82 when it is wide open, that is, when the engine is controlled by the throttle 3|. Then the exhaust escapes to the left from pipe I00 past In the operation of the fuel pump 53, a relief valve 58, loaded by a spring 51, prevents excessive pressures in the pipe 43.

aavaoea A bypass 54' connects the chamber 4| with the return pipe 44 and therefore with the return pipe 54. The purpose of this is to insure at all times a circulation of fuel through the chamber 4! and to reduce the amount of fuel that escapes past the valve 45. e

F18. 2 shows an alternative in which fuel injection is used in place of injection into the supercharger. The diaphragm 52 is now shown connected through a rod 84 with a rack 81 which regulates the discharge from the individual fuel :pumps 89, 80, 9i and 92 which supply fuel to the individual cylinders of the internal combustion engine. These pumps comprise a well known fuel injection pump. The fuel enter these pumps through pipe 94. The remaining parts of the control system remain as before. In Fig. 2, for simplification, the ignition has been omitted and also the mixture control lever 24. The operation of device shown in Fig. 2 when the cam 31 determines the opening of the needle valve 40, a certain flow takes place down the pipe to the fuel passa e 94 and assuming that the engine has been speeded up, then there is an increased pressure in the chamber 5i against diaphragm 52, compressing spring 49 which moves the rack 81 to the right and the flow through the pipe 94 increases, which decreases the pressure in chamber 5| until equilibrium is reached. Thus, when the engine speed is increased, there is an increased flow of fuel.

What I claim is:

A manual control mean for airplane engines, having a variable pitch constant speed propeller, and an air entrance and a throttle valve therein, and a supercharger, the pressure whch is developed by said supercharger being adapted to be controlled by said throttle valve, a centrifugal governor adapted to control the pitch of said propeller to giv the desired engine speed, a throttle adjusting device responsive to the pressure of said supercharger, said manual control means being adapted to vary the said pressure to which the throttle is adjusted and to determine the speed at which the governor will be in equilibrium so that the manual control means selects the corresponding pressure to be developed by said supercharger and at the same time select the desired engine speed, a supply of fuel under con stant pressure, a metering valve controlling the flow of fuel, a cam having a double curvature, said manual means being adapted to move said cam in one direction so as to regulate the position of the valve at each desired engine speed, means for moving said cam ,in a second direction at right angles to the first direction, barometric re-. 7

sponsive means adapted to move said cam in said second direction, whereby at each selected engine speed the fuel supply is varied for changes in altitude, and at each altitude the fuel supply is varied for each change in the engine speed selected.

STANLEY M. UDALE. 

